The Red Room
by goldengirl922
Summary: An undercover operation tests Eddie and Jamie's relationships and shows them whether they are better together or apart.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

She was avoiding him and he knew it. They were still riding together in the squad car and they talked, not as much as usual, but they still talked. It felt weird that after four years of wishing that he would have at least one quiet tour he now had his wish; but he hated it.

After tour however, all bets were off and she would be out of the precinct like a bat out of hell, without even giving him a heads up. He knew something was up and even after rigorous questioning he still had no answers.

Had he done something wrong?

Said something weird?

He had no idea. So, he decided that if he wasn't going to get answers, he would just ride out the storm until it at least looked like it would be over. But then Friday came and something changed.

"Do you remember the time that that fake bike courier gave you her number and it turned out that she'd given you the number to a Chinese restaurant." Eddie laughed before finishing, "I would literally give anything to go back in time to see the look on your face again, it was priceless."

Jamie, who was caught by surprise by this sudden change in character was somewhat speechless for a second. "Her name was Maya I think but yeah I remember."

"Y'know it's weird that people always assume that being a cop you're always going to see the worst parts of life and obviously that's partially true but we've had some pretty fun times in this squad car don't you think?" Eddie asked as she turned to Jamie.

"You're right, we've both had some fun but only one of us has been conned by a teenager." Jamie jabbed, he couldn't resist bringing it up again, it was just too funny.

"I am never going to live that down, am I?" Eddie rolled her eyes at the memory.

"Not in a million years." Jamie smiled wickedly. He took a breath as his smile faded a little and said, "What's with sudden burst of nostalgia?"

"Nothing okay Reagan, there's no need to read into everything. Sometimes you need to turn that big brain of yours off, it would do you some good." Eddie deflected.

Maybe she was right, maybe he was just reading into things too much. He decided that it would be best not to push the issue and enjoy having the old Eddie back, maybe this was the end of the storm that he had been hoping for.

His theory was again proved right when Eddie decided that it would be a good idea to head to their favourite diner after tour, something that they had not done in a while. They had fun and were smiling again when they drove home together.

"You didn't have to take me home Jamie." Eddie insisted. "I could have just taken the subway or a taxi."

"Well you're here now and there's nothing you can do about it, unless you want to stop the car and jump out." He said mockingly.

"There's no need to be rude about it." Eddie responded in an offended tone, she was secretly pleased that he did drive her home, it just meant that she got to spend more time with him which she didn't think was so bad.

"Here we are." Jamie announced when he pulled up to her apartment building, he was happy that things had got back to normal between them. He turned to face Eddie and then saw that she was already looking at him, there was an emotion in her eyes that he couldn't figure out and before he could say anything Eddie pulled him into a hug. He was at first stiff from the shock of it all but then he melted into it, the overwhelming smell of Eddie flooding his senses and all the feelings that he had to push down on a daily basis, started to rise up again, but it was over much before he wanted it to be.

"Thank you." She whispered. "For everything."

Jamie, was stunned and wanted to use a smart retort but decided against it. He didn't want to ruin the moment between them, instead he just answered, "No problem partner. I'll see you on Monday."

"Bye Reagan." And with that she left the car.

Jamie frowned at the finality of her words and he couldn't help feeling that something in his life had just ended.

She didn't come into work on Monday or Tuesday or for the next coming weeks leaving Jamie to ponder whether the storm was really over or the worst was still to come.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"Emily Jackson. Nice to meet you ma'am." She said shaking the woman's hand before sitting at the table that was set before them.

"It's nice to meet you. My name is Lily Rhodes but just Lily will suffice." The older woman paused and took a look at Emily before continuing. "So tell me a little bit about yourself."

"Well I am 21 years old and I'm majoring in Economics at NYU."

"Interesting." Lily said cryptically as she read the list of recommendations and the CV that Emily had given to her. "So, what brought you to the attention of ' _La Bernadine?'"_

"Well, I was actually told about this place by a friend of mine, she loved the restaurant and she knows that I'm a real foodie so she thought that I should check the place out. But then I heard that you guys were hiring and I thought that this would be a great place to work."

After a long silence Lily looked up, her facial expressions were cold and her countenance was one that demanded respect. Emily, ever the observant one, detected this and subconsciously sat up straighter. "I think you are a good candidate, but are you prepared to work the long hours? I can't have any employee that slacks off because they're too busy with school."

"Of course," Emily replied emphatically. "College is never really that much of an issue, my professor likes to record his lectures so needing to catch upon work isn't really the much of a problem." She smiled but quickly stopped when she realised that the smile wasn't being returned.

"Alright then. Are you able to start tonight?"

"Well…um." Emily stuttered while Lily raised her eyebrows expectantly. "I'm sure I can."

"Good. Because this will be your trial session; we have a big party going on tonight and we are a little understaffed. I'll be watching you work and if you can prove to me that you are worth me hiring you then the job is yours. If not then you're fired, is that understood?"

"Yes ma'am." Emily said clearly with a tight lipped smile.

"You!" Lily pointed to a tall woman with light brown skin and dark brown curly hair, she turned around and immediately came over and started waiting for her command. "Take…"

"Emily."

"Right. Take Emily around the restaurant, show her how we do things around here and make sure she's equipped and properly dressed for tonight." She was gone before Emily could even take all of the information in and she was left with the other waitress.

"You'll be lucky if she even knows who you are by the end of six months." The girl quipped with her voice dripping with annoyance. "I'm Aaliyah by the way." She rolled her eyes and then mumbled, "You would have thought it wouldn't be that hard to remember especially since we have name tags on pretty much all of the time."

"I'm guessing she's not boss of the year then." Emily whispered already taking a liking to Aaliyah.

"Not by a long shot." She laughed and then took a breath before continuing. "Come on we've got a lot to do."

* * *

 _1 week before…_

Eddie sat at the conference room table, jerking her knee up and down as she did when she was nervous. She looked at the files that she had brought with her to the meeting for the 10th time.

 _Emily Marie Jackson_

 _21 years old_

 _Economics Major at NYU_

 _Born and Raised in Westchester County_

That was just the first page with the main facts, the rest of the files had a whole backstory and 21 years of a life that she'd had to learn within month. Today it was the final test of her knowledge before she adopted this new identity; just yesterday she had to dye her hair and was now a brunette, which, she had to admit, suited her better the she ever would have imagined.

She'd learnt all of the information that was needed, she knew it inside out and back to front which meant that she had no reason to be nervous about this final testing. Despite this, her stomach was still tied up in knots and she was biting her lip so hard that she it was probably bleeding already. Suddenly, her train of thoughts were interrupted by the sudden, sharp buzz of her phone ringing; she looked at the caller ID and sighed.

 _That was why she was nervous._

Of course, it was none other than her partner Jamie Reagan, who still, valiantly she might add, had't given up calling after her major disappearing act two days ago. She knew that she'd had to make peace with all the people in her life and say a not-so-obvious goodbye to them, but since she had no family that she saw regularly and most of her friends were cops who would eventually figure out why she was supposedly 'missing' the only person she really had to say goodbye to was Jamie. Lord knows it was one of the hardest things that she had ever had to do; it made her realise how much of her daily life revolved around Jamie. Obviously, they had to be on the job together and they also always took extended tours together, off duty they would hang out all the time, even on days that they had no reason to be spending time together, they would convince themselves of reasons that meant it was perfectly okay for them to be hanging out.

At first she tried to convince herself that they were spending a lot of time together because it was convenient and that they would soon grow out of it and slowly start drifting apart a little. But that never happened. Year on year they grew closer and closer, and soon spending time with Jamie became part of her daily routine; she almost felt that she couldn't live without it. Which was why the last couple of weeks had been hard as she's forced herself not to go out with Jamie after tours and limit the amount of time that they generally spent together so that when the time for her to leave did come, it wouldn't be too hard for her to distance herself. Needless to say, it didn't do her much good as every time Jamie called a lump in her throat formed it pained her to ignore the call.

She told herself that it would be better for him this way, as she had no idea how long this op would last and she knew that Jamie had to move on at some point. she, like everyone else knew the saying 'if you love something, set it free.' But why did doing the right thing have to be so damn hard?

Although, if she was being completely honest, it wasn't like she had much of a choice in what she had to do. Detective Ava Martinez and Detective Peter Thompson, the lead detectives of the operation, were very clear about the fact that no one, not even her partner was allowed to know about any detail of the case or even that she was going undercover at all, (although it didn't take a genius to figure it out.)

Her assignment was clear, and all she had to do was reach the secret club called the Red Room that was hidden in the high-end restaurant called 'La Bernadine'. They had to be extremely wary of any leaks or outside sources finding out about the operation as previous, more experienced undercover officers had gone to interview for a job or even tried to get in but the Rhodes were particularly careful and were smart enough to figure out when they were being fooled. That was why, they needed a fresh face who was much younger and less likely to be picked out as an undercover cop, Eddie's limited yet successful experience in the short, yet high-risk world of undercover, had apparently made her a perfect candidate for the role and it was not to her disadvantage that she was 'young and hot' as had been previously mentioned.

From what Martinez and Thompson had described, Eddie knew that the Red Room was a very exclusive room hidden somewhere in the restaurant. The only people allowed in were the people that were on a very exclusive and sought-after guest list and also the employees that were trusted enough to work there. The room, apparently contained millions of dollars worth of illegal drugs and was a hotspot for illegal actions, from prostitution to theft. Eddie shuddered just thinking about what she would have to do to infiltrate the room; a part of her was excited to find out what she could do without Jamie's ever-constant presence and family name following her around everywhere on the job, however, she wasn't stupid and she sure as hell wasn't entering into this op lightly. She knew that this may be one of the hardest and most dangerous things she has ever done in the years that she has been on the job and what's killing her inside, is that she has no one to share her feelings to. And that's the worst part of this.

She clears her mind when Martinez, Thompson and another man (a detective she assumes) comes in. Half an hour later she finishes the intense questioning that she receives and she passes with flying colours. She is finally ready.

At least that's what everyone else assumes.

But the hardest part of the operation is preparing yourself psychologically, because it's not just a name change, or a change in hair colour. It's a new ID, a new apartment in another part of the city. A new persona.

And that's what scares her. The fact that she could go into this operation and become this whole other person, a person that she doesn't want to be; and the fact she may not like the person she's become when this is done. So she needs herself to keep a grasp on her own reality and hang on tight to her own identity before it gets lost forever in the dark depths of the Red Room.

* * *

 _A/N: So it turns out that I do my best work at 1am in the morning when all my family is asleep :) But I had fun writing this chapter anyway. I know I'm a terrible person and I'm supposed to update my other stories (plural - sorry guys) but my muse wouldn't let up and I quite like the way this story is going for me. I will TRY (no promises) to update on the weekends depending on how cruel some of my teachers feel that week, but the schedule may be a bit unpredictable due to my GCSE's etc etc and me trying to actually have a life but we'll see how it goes. Thank you all for reviewing so far, and sorry for the short chapter, I always like to do that to see if people are actually interested in the idea before I actually start writing more. So enough of me rambling, if you've got this far thanks for reading and PLEASE review. Thanks a bunch x -K_

 _P.S I'm supposed to say that I don't own these wonderful characters aren't I? Well now you know that the only ones that I do own are the ones whose names you've probably never heard in the show before. Well now you know. Ciao._


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"So whatcha reading?" Aaliyah peered over Eddie's shoulder while she was reading her college Econ textbook. When Aaliyah received no response, she quickly flipped the textbook closed to see the title of the book.

"What the hell?" Eddie looked up, clearly startled that she had just popped out of nowhere. "You know if you wanted to know the title of the book you could have just asked, like any other regular person."

"I did ask, and then you didn't respond. So I took its upon myself to look for my own answers. And plus, I'm not normal, you should know that by now Em." Came Aaliyah's witty response.

But it was true and Eddie knew it, for the short month that she been working at the restaurant, she had become fast friends with Aaliyah, through her constant chatter, an appetite that nearly matched her own and no-nonsense attitude, Eddie had quickly learnt that Aaliyah Johnson was basically another taller version of herself.

"Yeah you know what, you're right; I mean you are pretty crazy aren't you." Eddie teased.

"Hey!" She put her hand in the universal stop sign. "Nobody, gets to make fun of Aaliyah Johnson, except Aaliyah Johnson. You got that short-stack?" She had a serious look on her face but Eddie knew she was joking.

Eddie raised her hands in mock defeat and added, "Okay fine, but don't ever call me shortstack. It's just weird."

"Yeah sorry about that," She chuckled. "It even sounded weird coming out of my mouth y'know." She paused and they shared a smile.

Eddie looked down at the textbook and realised that she was technically supposed to be studying, she rolled her eyes and looked at Aaliyah. "See look what you've done now. Now my break's nearly up and I can't study for my test next week."

"Ah college, I definitely don't miss those days. Honestly it was a complete nightmare." Eddie had also learnt that Aaliyah had in fact finished college, she went to Columbia and studied Marketing and Finance and passed with honours, but the problem was that she hated every bit of it. Now she was out of college and able to do quote 'whatever she wanted without her parents pushy presence' but she was finding that living in NYC with a whole lot of student debts to pay off wasn't as fun as she had previously hoped. Eddie understood her pain and wanted to empathise with her, but for obvious reasons she couldn't. So she kept her mouth shut and just listened to what Aaliyah had to say, it was times like these that she wondered why she'd ever agreed to do this UC, she hated having to rethink what she was going say to people instead of just going with her gut instinct.

"You don't miss it? Not even a little." Eddie asked although she was pretty sure that she already knew the answer.

Surprisingly, Aaliyah looked nostalgic for a momentary second. It was slight and any normal civilian probably wouldn't have noticed it, but Eddie did. However, as soon as Eddie had seen it, it disappeared. "Not even a little." She paused and retied her ponytail before saying. "Come on Em, we've got work to do."

* * *

"So you're telling me that after a month of working in this place, you still have no information about the Red Room? Not even its location in the building?" Thompson asked seething. He was annoyed but he couldn't exactly display his full range of emotions in the small diner that they sat in.

Eddie winced as Thompson spoke, when he put it like that he made it sound like she'd been taking a vacation while working at La Bernadine. "It's not that easy, I have to gain people's trust first. You really think that they're going to allow an employee who's been working there for a month to just have access to it."

"What he was trying to say Emily," Martinez, who was obviously the good cop in this partnership, began to paraphrase, "is that we all know that the NYPD has limited resources so you know that we can't keep this op going for too long. Meaning that you need to try to find opportunities to find more information about the Red Room."

"Yeah cause that was clearly what he was trying to say." Eddie mumbled under her breath.

They were all located in the back of a small diner on the other side of town from where the restaurant was. It was a cliche meeting place but it was required for them to meet in person once month to gather intel and check up on how Eddie was doing. Especially as she was such an inexperienced officer who was delving pretty deep into the undercover world. There was also the fact that the owner of the diner was conveniently a former cop who, known only to the NYPD, provided small meeting places that detectives could meet with their UC's.

"I have met Jack Rhodes a couple of times in passing but he's unlikely to notice me." Eddie added.

"Okay then, is there anything else we need to know?"

"No," Eddie hesitated and bit her lip, she didn't want to rock the boat but she needed to at least ask. "You got any news on my partner, I mean do you know who he's riding with now and if he's alright?"

"I'm sorry we don't really tend to look into the lives of other officers that don't really concern us." Thompson added sarcastically after being quiet for a while.

"Come on Thompson, please?"

He rolled his eyes but eventually gave in to Eddie's demand. "All I can tell you is that he hasn't been in the news at all and I heard that he's riding with some Sergeant called Renzelli or something."

"Renzulli." Eddie breathed a sigh of relief that he was riding with his old TO, she felt that Renzulli may be the only partner that would distract Jamie enough so that he would forget about her. "That's good."

That was definitely the understatement of the year.

"We better be heading off, remember to stay in touch." Martinez said as they all stood up and departed in separate ways as to not draw too much attention or suspicion to themselves.

As Eddie walked to the nearest subway station, she reflected on what Thompson and Martinez had said and she knew they were right.

She needed to get into that room, at all costs.

* * *

A/N: _Sorry guys for not updating last week as I wasn't feeling to good but I'm better now and I'm actually trying to stick to my writing schedule. The action picks up much more next chapter as an opportunity arises for Eddie and we may just check in on how Jamie is doing depending on where my crazy brain decides to take me. Thanks to everyone who has reviewed so far, please know that I appreciate them all so much._


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"You sure you're alright Reagan?" Renzulli asked for what he believed to be the 5th time that hour, even he had to admit that him asking was becoming tedious, but he honestly couldn't help it. The kid looked so… lost. He'd been like that since Eddie had gone; he'd always known that they'd had a strong and extremely close relationship, but he never would have realised that his partner's abrupt disappearance, that was ultimately for an undercover op, would affect him this much. In all the years that he had known Jamie, he had never been like this, even when his ex, Sydney, had cruelly left him for a job on the other side of the Atlantic, he didn't look anything like this; in fact he had looked slightly relieved, as if he'd had a burden lifted off his shoulders. He'd completely supported Jamie's relief, as he had quickly come to the conclusion that someone who could just up and leave so quickly for a pay check, really couldn't be worth it. But this look, this demeanour, was a totally different ballpark, he had planned to get Jamie out of this funk that he seemed to have going on, but he was quickly realising that the task was easier said than done.

"You've asked me that five times in the last hour Sarge and every time, the answer has been the same. So I am going to say it for the last time - I'm fine." Jamie snapped at Renzulli, much harsher than he had intended to. "Sorry. I didn't mean to go off on you like that." He added remorsefully. It was misplaced anger he reminded himself, but the question was: who was he really angry at? The obvious answer would be Eddie, for just leaving him high and dry with no warning whatsoever; but he'd done some soul searching over the past few weeks and he'd realised that there was actually some internalised anger at himself, for not spotting the crystal-clear signs sooner.

A few days after she had left, he had made the assumption that she had gone deep undercover and obviously couldn't contact him, his later conversation with Renzulli had confirmed that. He had tried to extract more details about the undercover from his beloved sergeant but was cut short when he found out that Renzulli knew no more information than he did. Jamie, never known for being a quitter, did not give up the search, even using his usually-forbidden contacts in the department to find even a small scrap of intel on Eddie's location, but alas, the lips of the NYPD were tightly sealed and everyone knew that once they were closed it was almost impossible to open back up again. For one of the first times in his life, he had no idea what to say or even what to do; so he shut down and turned off his emotions in an effort not to get himself hurt again, it was a classic Jamie Reagan coping mechanism, one that he had to admit wasn't working as well as it used to.

After tour, Jamie changed and walked out of the precinct, alone and with nowhere to be, as seemed to be the norm nowadays. He had always been a fairly friendly person, going for drinks if he was invited, but he usually liked more quiet events with a few of his close friends. With Eddie that all changed, she was the life of the party and loved to be surrounded by people all day, everyday. She had told him once that the reason that she loved to surround herself with lots of people, was because it made her forget how truly lonely she really was. Other people had families and siblings, nieces and nephews to surround themselves with when they got home. But it was always on the ride home or when everyone began to leave, that the hard reality always set in - there was never anyone waiting for her when she went home. Jamie had initially felt bad for her but soon realised that that was her coping mechanism, that was how she got through every day and every night to keep herself sane.

Jamie closed his eyes for a moment as he laid his head back on the headrest in his car, he opened his mirror and looked at his face. He looked sullen and worn out it was almost as if he had aged a couple of years over the past month. 'Live a little Reagan' Eddie's voice ran through his head and he chuckled, even without her here she was still influencing his actions. Although, maybe she was right, Eddie was doing her job, and as much as Jamie was worried about Eddie, he knew she was a very smart and capable cop, he was sure that his girl would succeed in anything that she did. Eddie wouldn't want him to be moping around feeling sorry for himself or her for that matter, she would kick his ass up and tell him to move on, face the next battle in life and she would come back to him before he knew it.

So that's what he did.

* * *

"Good luck with that." Jessica Williams said to Eddie, whilst pointing at the rota sheet. Eddie glanced up to check it and saw that she was on bar duty.

"What's wrong with it?" Eddie asked even though she knew the answer to her question.

"The bar can get a little crazy if you know what I mean." She whispered to Eddie as if it was some well kept secret. "Hey I know this is only your first time since training, so if you need any help newbie, just holla."

"Thanks I'll be sure to take you up on that." Eddie replied with a small smile on her face.

During the first few weeks of working at the restaurant she had to undergo 'training' so that she could work in each part of the place. The bar section had been her favourite as she learnt how to make cocktails, make mixed drinks etc. she believed that they were useful skills to take back with her and maybe use a little at home.

Not long afterwards, her shift started at the bar and Eddie quickly realised that Jessica really hadn't been exaggerating, there were so many calls and orders to remember that she soon felt slightly overwhelmed, after about an hour she started to get the hang of it. The crowd began to wind down a little and she saw a fairly young couple laughing together and she felt a small pang in her heart, oh how she missed Jamie. She soon forgot about it though when she saw the woman go to the bathroom and she saw the man bring out a small bag of some kind of powder and pour it in the woman's drink. Anyone else may have missed it but Eddie however, saw it and confronted him.

"Hey, lady what are you doing? She's not done with that!" The man exclaimed when Eddie took the drink away.

"I think she is." Eddie said gravely. She wasn't letting anyone get away with a crime like that - consequences be damned. "I saw what you just did there, so I suggest that you should probably leave before I call security."

"What are you talking about I didn't do anything. You're crazy." He grabbed Eddie's wrist, squeezing it.

"Security!" Eddie shouted as she tried to get him off her. In the commotion the man grabbed Eddie's arm and knocked it against a glass which shattered onto the floor.

The whole restaurant went silent.

"Marcus what the hell are you doing?" The woman reappeared from the bathroom with a look of disbelief on her face.

"Ma'am this man tried to roofie your drink." Eddie said before Marcus could get a word in.

"That's not true, she's a pyscho." Marcus growled.

"Really, then what's this?" Eddie said reaching into his pocket and revealing the bag of drugs. The woman was shocked and had tears streaming down her face, security was again called over and Marcus was escorted out, he was still cursing and screaming at Eddie but she didn't care. She was only focused on consoling the woman and trying to calm her down.

"I don't know what to say, I'm so grateful." The woman said while wiping her eyes.

"You don't have to say anything ma'am, I'm just glad you're safe." Eddie smiled.

"Please call me Jasmine." She said as she returned the small smile.

As Eddie turned around she saw Lily and a younger man enter from the back room of the restaurant and her smile quickly disappeared.

"Mom!" Jasmine turned around to her mother and went to hug the younger man. She quickly started describing what had just happened while the younger man walked up to Eddie.

"I heard what you did." He said. "Thank you for saving my sister, it means a lot." And then he walked away.

* * *

Eddie carefully picked up her bag as she tried not to hurt her wrist any further, she inspected it and now saw that it had bruises that were a kaleidoscope of different colours. She had no idea if she was going to keep her job or not, but based on the death stare that Lily had given her, she wouldn't place any bets on her coming in the next day. She opened the door and nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw a figure leaning against the wall.

"What the hell?" Eddie said breathlessly, still trying to slow down her beating heart.

"Sorry I didn't mean to scare you." The young man from earlier grinned. "In case you hadn't realised I'm Jasmine's brother."

"I figured." Eddie opened her mouth to continue but awkwardly closed it when she realised that she had nothing else to say.

"So… how's the wrist?"

"It's a bit battered and bruised but I'll power through."

"What you did out there was pretty badass I must admit."

"All in a day's work." Eddie offered a smug smile.

He returned the smile for a moment before turning serious again. "You're definitely going to keep your job, don't worry about that. If it were up to me you would be getting a promotion, but my mother is a little on the harsh side so.."

"Thanks." Eddie looked down for a second before adding. "So do you have a name or what?"

"Its Will. You?"

"Emily."

"Nice - I'll see you around Emily." Will turned round and gave her a 100 watt grin and then walked away.

Eddie released the breath she didn't even know she was holding, this was it. She'd found her way in.

* * *

 _A/N: Hope you. enjoyed this chapter, if you did please, please review I really do appreciate them. Thanks a bunch x_


	5. Chapter 5

_A/N: I tried to update this yesterday but it seems like wasn't working. Anyway, this chapter may be a little hard for Jamko shippers, I know it was fairly hard for me to write it. But no fear, they always find their way back to each other. Right?_

* * *

Chapter 5

"I don't believe you." Eddie said between laughs, as she was trying - but failing - to catch her breath.

"It's true I'm telling you." Will said before turning to her and continuing. "I was a real riot. You would have loved it."

"I'll bet." Eddie replied before she put a spoonful of ice cream in her mouth and sighed. "This is the best ice cream I have ever tasted."

"Pretty much all ice cream tastes the same."

"What?!" Eddie replied shocked and looked at Will as if she'd been physically hurt by that statement. "How could those words even leave your mouth?"

"I'm sorry, that's just how I feel." Will stated mockingly.

"Here's the truth ok, no ice cream tastes exactly the same, Will. Did you hear that? Or do you need me to repeat it again." Eddie said, a little too loudly.

"Okay." Will laughed quietly as he stopped walking and turned to face Eddie and gave her an adorable grin. Soon they were both looking into each others eyes and they both leaned into each other. Their kiss was soft and sweet, much like Will, who she had grown to like over the past few weeks.

Will opened his eyes and smiled at Eddie as they broke apart, "That was nice."

"Yeah it was." Eddie responded her eyes gleaming.

"We're not moving too fast are we Em? Cause I know we've only had three dates and if you want to slow things down, I would completely understand…" Will rambled but was quickly stopped by Eddie.

"We are perfectly fine. I would love to keep doing this." Eddie reassured with a calming hand on his cheek.

"Good, because I like you too. That was just me being a boy scout." Will winked.

* * *

They walked a few more minutes before Will's phone rang, his mother had called to tell him that there was an emergency at the restaurant that he needed to attend to as soon as possible. He wanted to call a taxi to get Eddie home, but she insisted on taking the subway back home.

That's how she ended up walking down the busy street to the nearest subway station, trying to gather her thoughts about what had happened that night.

Will's comment about being a boy scout, had bugged her and she suddenly felt guilty about her relationship with Will, although she had no reason to. She didn't have any boyfriend that she would be returning to when she eventually completed this op, meaning that she definitely wasn't cheating on anyone. But deep down she knew she was circling round the real reason that the comment bothered her, it was because she knew it was something that Jamie would say. In fact there were many similarities between Jamie and Will, that her brain wouldn't stop pointing out whenever she was with Will. They had the same adorable charm and the 100 watt smile that would take Eddie's breath away every time she saw it.

No. She thought, as she mentally rolled her eyes at her cheesy, yet true, thoughts. She didn't want to become that woman who couldn't live her life without a particular man with her, that wasn't her; Eddie Janko was a strong independent woman, who knew her task and was determined to go through with it until the end. No matter what it took.

* * *

Jamie looked down at his watch again as he waited for his companion, who was nearing on half an hour late. He repeatedly thought about cancelling and just going home to a nice cold beer and his couch, but he knew that would be the jackass thing to do, so he sat at the table and patiently waited. Jackass, Eddie had only seriously called him that once when he was going out with Dr. Lamb Chop, as she had called Jennifer; ironically the person he was now waiting for. He now knew why she had lashed out like that at the time, he understood the jealousy that she had felt, hell he had even felt the same towards some of her boyfriends, Jackass-Josh to name one. But tonight was about moving onto a new chapter in his life and Lord knows he needed to, all the not-so-subtle hints about him bringing a girlfriend to Sunday dinner had now grown tiresome and Eddie's departure and been a wake up call, one that showed him how everyone was moving on with their life and maybe he should too.

So he started by picking up a copy of the new Sergeant's guide to study from, just like he did almost 3 years ago, but this time he was finally ready to do it. Jamie realised that his father had been correct in assuming that something had been holding him back from moving up the ranks all these years, apart from Frank's cautiousness. Once Eddie had left the squad car patrol just wasn't as fun, sure he still loved the fact that he could save a life or help an EDP at any given time but something was missing and he knew what it was. Jamie Reagan was finally moving on to bigger and better things, much like his partner was, and he was interested to see where they led him.

"Hey I'm so sorry I'm late I had a crisis at the hospital." Jennifer Bennet said as she approached their table, clearly a little out of breath.

"That's ok." Jamie smiled charmingly as he helped Jen out of her coat and kissed her on the cheek sweetly.

"You know you really are an amazing, most guys would have cancelled after twenty minutes and gone home." Jennifer commented as she sat down.

"Nah, I'm not sure about that."

"Trust me, I'm sure, I know from personal experience. I've been on some really terrible dates y'know." She griped.

"Really." Jamie smiled amused. "Worst date I've ever been on was I college, we were at a restaurant just like this one, and my date did not say a single word the whole time."

"No!" Jennifer gasped.

"I kid you not, she did not say one word the whole time, she only nodded and shook her head. It was the worst thing; once we finished our meals, I was out of there as soon as." Jamie laughed and grinned at Jen's infectious smile.

This time the smile was real.


End file.
